Over 100 Holyoke teachers to leave by choice or otherwise, including union president Gus Morales | masslive.com:
Over 100 Holyoke teachers to leave by choice or otherwise, including union president Gus Morales
HOLYOKE -- As the end of the school year approaches, more than 100 of Holyoke Public Schools teachers are on the market looking for new work or choosing to retire.
Across the district, 78 teachers have been asked not to return to Holyoke schools next year. 54 are teachers with non-professional status, meaning they haven't held their position for more than three years, were non-renewed. Four teachers with professional status were also let go.
When asked why many were non-renewed, Jackie Reis, media relations coordinator for the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, spoke generally. "Districts don't need to give a reason when a teacher lacks professional status. Some don't have the right license, others may have a one-year contract filling in for another teacher."
Open positions are expected to be filled by the start of the school year.
Another 20 teachers worked in the district without accreditation but were hired for their work experience. They were hired with a waiver that allowed them to get around the accreditation process. Many of the teachers working with a waiver were at Dean Technical High School. Their waivers expire this summer and have not been renewed. Reis said there's a chance they could re-apply to work within the district.
These teachers are 16 percent of the total district teaching staff in 2015.
Holyoke Teachers Association President Gus Morales said another 30 teachers have announced plans to retire or leave the district for other teaching opportunities. He said many have chosen to take early retirement with a pension cut and others will move to another district because of uncertainty under state receivership.
"We're losing some fantastic teachers," Morales said. "I thought morale was low last year but it is lower this year."
He added that he expects more teachers to resign during the summer as they're hired to work in other districts.
The number of teachers non-renewed this year is lower than last summer when 87 were let go. The number of teachers between 2014 and 2015 decreased from 575 to 488. Student enrollment has remained stagnant, at 5573 for the past two years. Cuts were made last year to close a $4.5 million budget deficit.
Members of the state receivership team will host a meeting on Monday to discuss the upcoming school year's budget, which is expected to discuss closing another budget Over 100 Holyoke teachers to leave by choice or otherwise, including union president Gus Morales | masslive.com:
